


Delicate

by anxious_alien



Category: The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms, The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M, Kind of a slow burn, love a good enemies to lovers trope, mostly on Katherine's part, pure fluff, we barely got a glimpse of Elijah and Katherine and frankly I feel robbed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-11-16 02:07:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18085367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anxious_alien/pseuds/anxious_alien
Summary: It's no secret that Katherine and Elijah have a...history. It's no secret that he still feels betrayed by her actions 500 years ago, and she still believes he would turn her over to Klaus in a heartbeat. But one chance meeting on Christmas eve, and suddenly they're both reassessing what they think they know about the other person.For 500 years Klaus chased her across the globe, destroying anyone she dared to get close to, and Elijah aided him. How was it that he thoughtshewas the one who couldn't be trusted?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not expecting this to be very many chapters (we all know how Elijah and Katherine end). 
> 
> Unless I get bored and it just goes off the rails and into AU territory, which is always possible. :D
> 
> Inspired by the song Delicate by Taylor Swift

**Christmas Eve 2010**

Being on the run was not so bad, and frankly Katherine was used to running. It was all she ever did. Stay alive no matter what.

Being alone on Christmas Eve certainly was depressing though. Drinking alone in a half empty bar was certainly not the way most people would want to spend the holiday, even the evil and conniving Katherine Pierce.  

She knew that, at this very moment, the gang in Mystic Falls was working towards locating the cure for vampirism. She had no interest in being _human_ again and vulnerable to Klaus Mikaelson—and whomever else she had managed to piss off along the way—but she knew Klaus would not want the cure simply floating about in the wrong hands. So she was already working on a plan. She just needed to wait for those idiots to do all the hard work for her.

She finished off the rest of her martini and told the bartender, ever so sweetly, that she would like another. On the house, of course. He was kind of cute, and she wondered how he might taste.

“Oh, sorry, the man in the booth over there said you’re to pay if you plan on drinking any more tonight.” The bartender told her, with a glazed over look in his eyes. She frowned, and turned to where he had pointed, ready to snap the neck of whatever vampire thought it would be funny to mess with her evening.

Her blood ran cold when she realized whom she’d just come face to face with. She blinked, and he had left the booth and was now only a foot away from her.

“Elijah.” She breathed. Surely he would not kill her in this bar, with people around. And surely, at the very least, he would know that _Klaus_ would rather have that pleasure and he would never dare take that from his brother.

“Katerina.” he appeared more amused than anything. He took out his wallet and handed the man a few bills, “Actually, you know what? I’ll pay for the young lady’s drink. I’ll have a scotch, if you don’t mind.”

The bartender nodded mutely and went to fix their drinks. Katherine recovered. “Oh, buying me a drink before you inevitably deliver me to your psychotic brother? How chivalrous.” She said sarcastically. “How did you find me?”

“Believe it or not, I wasn’t looking for you, Miss Petrova.” He sat down on one of the bar stools, and gestured for her to return to her seat as well. Reluctantly, she did so. “I’m afraid my siblings are an absolute nightmare to be around at the moment. I came to New York City to get a break.”

“Even on Christmas?” she was surprised. “Won’t Klaus be furious? Family above all, and all that sentimental nonsense.”

“He’s preoccupied.”

She knew that, of course. She kept track of everything back in Mystic Falls, determined to use the knowledge to her own benefit when the time was right.

The bartender returned with their drinks, and she picked hers up and took a sip, her eyes never straying from Elijah. His motives were still a mystery.

“So why are you here, talking to me? There’s probably a billion other things you could be doing right now. Are you telling me you’re _not_ considering snapping my neck and delivering me to Klaus on a silver platter so he can torture me some more and then run a stake through me?” Why not just get it all out in the open? She was feeling bold. Plus, getting him talking gave her time to look for an exit strategy.

“It's possible the thought crossed my mind. But…it’s the holiday, after all.” He admitted, and she knew it but it still terrified her to hear him say it out loud. “It’s Christmas eve and perhaps I just wanted to spend some time with a familiar face.”

“Yeah, sure, I look like your dead ex. So does Elena. Go bother her.” Katherine muttered. If she got any consolation out of this, it would be that he would kill her himself and then have to deal with his brother’s temper tantrum.

“No.” he disagreed, not at all bothered by her flippant remarks, “You look like Katerina. This…Katherine person is not someone I’m familiar with at all.”

“That’s a shame. She’s way more fun.” Katherine pouted.

Elijah didn’t respond, and she honestly no longer had a clue where this was going. But at least he wasn’t looking to kill her that evening. That was something.

“Well, if I’m not your hostage tonight, I think I’d better be on my way.” She said finally, breaking the silence.

“Are you staying in the city?” he asked.

“On what planet do you really think I’m going to tell you? And don’t bother compelling me. I take my daily dose of vervain.” If she had planned on staying in New York she certainly wouldn’t be anymore. Even a city of over eight million people was far too small to share with one original vampire. Perhaps she should leave the continent entirely. That might be enough distance.

“Of course.” He said quickly, and she caught a hint of something unfamiliar in his eyes. It was as though his cool, calculating demeanor broke for a split second. Or maybe she was only imagining things. “Have a lovely evening, Katerina. I expect you’ll be clear across the country by the end of tomorrow.”

“I’m not Katerina, anymore.” She said softly. That girl was dead and buried, and she was never coming back as long as Katherine had anything to say about it.

He studied her, and finally nodded. “My mistake. I thought I may have glimpsed her.” He smiled, and she did not like the way he looked at her. As though he knew her better than herself.

But then, he was gone. Just like that.

She was going to go to her apartment and pack her bags tonight. She doubted his uncharacteristic mercy would extend past Christmas. She certainly didn’t want to hang around and find out.


	2. Chapter 2

Katherine flew out to LA the day after Christmas. She found herself constantly looking back over her shoulder, believing any moment she might catch sight of the well-dressed Mikaelson brother trailing her. She had wanted to avoid straying too far from Mystic Falls, but she needed to throw him off her trail. She didn’t feel at ease until the plane landed in LAX and she grabbed her suitcases and headed off to find a decent place to stay. Los Angeles was smaller than NYC, for sure, but she had hopes that he would assume she’d leave the country entirely. Just in case, she’d actually bought a ticket for a flight out of LA, destined for Japan, which she had no intention of using. She just needed the paper trail to convince Elijah that she really had fled the country, if he thought she was stupid enough to leave a trail.

There was a time when she felt more for him, perhaps even more than she’d felt for Stefan Salvatore. That was so many lifetimes ago, before she knew what he and his brother truly were. Before she knew she was only a pawn to them.

She didn’t want to think about the heartbreak when she found out the truth. She focused on combing the city for an apartment that suited her needs and compelled the landlord to let her stay—rent-free, of course. Then, as an added precaution, she made short work of compelling as many people as she could on that entire block to forget that they’d ever seen her unless they were looking at her directly.

Satisfied with her work for the day, she set about shopping for furnishings for her new apartment.

* * *

 

He should not have followed her. Obviously, she’d made it clear she wanted nothing to do with him. And really, he should want nothing to do with her either.

She was a traitor, and had caused 500 years of tension between Elijah and his brother, Klaus. She should have trusted that he would find a way for her to survive the ritual, and he had. If only she’d given him the chance to explain.

She’d made him nearly believe in love again and then used his affection to her own benefit.

The right thing to do would be to immediately return her to Klaus. But he was oddly drawn in by her, as he had been all those years ago. A day or two more of observing wouldn’t hurt. And then he would decide what to do about her.

So he tracked her to Los Angeles, and nearly to Japan when he realized how odd it was that she would compel her way onto a plane here, but purchase a ticket to Japan.

It was a red herring. She had always been so clever. In the centuries Klaus spent chasing her, she was always ahead, even if it was just a step.

So she was here, in Los Angeles, a sprawling city filled with people. It wasn’t quite so daunting. He’d found her in larger cities than this over the years. Klaus had found her in all parts of the world until they believed she’d died in Mystic Falls over a century ago. They should have known she’d survived. Katerina always survived.

It had been the strangest feeling to hear of her death back then. Klaus was furious that he hadn’t been the one to end her. Elijah was…conflicted. He knew that ultimately he would see her die, but truth be told, this game helped to pass the time. Whether his brother cared to admit it or not, she was quite the formidable opponent, and a much more welcome one than Mikael.

He’d somehow found himself mourning her loss. A secret he never divulged to anyone. Even Rebekah, who’d never even met the girl, detested her merely because she had foiled Klaus’s happiness. And didn’t they all place Klaus’s happiness above all else?

The day he saw her in the tomb, disheveled and petrified of him, he’d almost been relieved. But beneath the fear was something else. Pure hatred. His old feelings for her were forgotten and he remembered what she truly had become. She was not his Katerina. _Thank you for having the good sense to be afraid._ And he’d meant it. He hated her for all of the things she made him feel, even after all this time. But did he really want to see her dead? Did he really want this to end once and for all?

A few more days passed, and he was no closer to locating her. He ignored all calls from Klaus and his other siblings. He made a point of laying low, searching for some indication that she was around. For all he knew, she had skipped town and he was wasting his time. But for some reason, he felt he should stay just a while longer. This was as good a place as any to continue his vacation from his siblings.

* * *

 

New Years Eve.

At least this was an acceptable holiday to get black-out drunk, whether with friends or alone. Katherine didn’t have friends, of course, but she could compel someone to like her for the evening.

She’d linked up with an old vampire acquaintance as well, a man named Will. She was well aware that Will had a thing for her. After all, didn’t everyone? But she was never one to shy away from being showered with attention.

“God, you look sexy.” He said, barely concealing his lust as his eyes traveled up and down her form in the tiny red dress she was wearing. She blew him a kiss.

“You’re a doll, as always Will. It’s a pity you still don’t have that daylight ring. We could get into some real trouble together.” She flirted shamelessly. The last thing he needed was a daylight ring. She’d never get rid of him.

“You know plenty of witches, I’m sure. You could get me one.”

“I prefer not to owe favors to witches.” She said with a frown, “It never ends well.”

The streets of LA were alive with people as they weaved through the crowds.  The more she drank—blood and alcohol alike—the more she forgot just how annoying Will could be. She let him dance close to her. She laughed when he quietly killed some guy that came up and flirt with her. It was almost annoying though, that she could garner the attention of men so easily but Stefan Salvatore was the only one who did not seem to understand what he was missing. Even now that Elena was a vampire and had dumped him—what a complete fool—he still refused to give her the time of day. Fine. She’d show him just what a mistake that was, all in due time.

She danced and drank well past midnight, until she realized she’d lost track of Will. At first, she thought, good riddance. But after an hour or so with him still strangely absent, she started to worry. She hadn’t had the time to get him to take vervain yet.

“Katherine!” she whirled around and let out a sigh of relief when she spotted him.

“Where the hell did you go?” she snapped, and then quickly recovered so that her panic wouldn’t show. “I mean, I almost got bored.”

“You’re growing careless.” He said, in a monotone.

Her stomach did backflips. “Excuse me?”

He shook his head, blinking. “What? Did I say something wrong? Hey, I’m gonna get another drink. You want anything?”

Numbly, she shook her head. Will, being a complete idiot, sensed nothing amiss and went to get himself a beer. She’d have to get rid of him and start over again. Already. She almost felt saddened by the thought. For once, she just wanted peace and quiet.


End file.
